


Springtime

by ImpulsivelyFicced



Category: Thor (Movies)
Genre: F/F
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-11-25
Updated: 2014-11-25
Packaged: 2018-02-27 00:30:16
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,031
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2672147
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ImpulsivelyFicced/pseuds/ImpulsivelyFicced
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Vaguely Viking Age Setting (or Discworld)</p>
<p>Jane is home from school in the city when she meets the young warrior goddess Sif taking time to explore Midgard for the first time. Just a story about two women falling in love.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Springtime

**Author's Note:**

> I was watching Thor with my family during the summer and just felt a sudden urge to write Sif/Jane. Why? Because ladies in love. Also I fucking love the costuming.
> 
> There is supposed to be betrothed Thor/Loki in here if you squint, but this isn't about them. Its about Sif and Jane, two women who in my opinion don't get enough love.

Jane watched the sun paint patterns with shadows as it rose above the trees. She scattered corn for the chickens that clucked and scuttled around her feet. She was home from school in the city, and Jane was glad for the quiet serenity of her village again, although she has long since realized the people she had grown up with still had much to learn and grow. Jane collected eggs and milked the goats all before the sun had truly risen and Jane saw someone coming up the lane. The woman was dressed in a blue cloak that trailed the ground, and armor glinted in the newly risen sun. When she saw Jane standing at the yard fence the woman hastened her steps and greeted Jane with a smile.

“Excuse me, but what realm is this?” The woman asked, and Jane knew instantly she was not dealing with a common stranger.

“A-ah Midgard, my lady.” Jae answered, and began to ponder the woman’s origin, and tried to recall the traits of the other beings of the Tree.

The stranger was beautiful, but not ethereally so like the Light Elves were depicted. Perhaps she was Vanir, beauty and magic combined into one form, yet even that did not seem right.

Jane realized she was staring, and flushed in embarrassment. “Would you like to come in? My mother was brewing tea when I came out so I’m sure breakfast will be ready soon, and my brothers should be back from their chores by now.”

The woman seemed surprised, but nodded. “Yes. Yes thank you Lady…?”

“Jane!”  Jane supplied, and blushed at the loudness of her voice. “My…my name is Jane.”

“It is a pleasure to meet you then, Lady Jane. I am Lady Sif, of Asgard.” The woman introduced herself, bowing to Jane across the fence.

An Aesir. Jane had never met or even seen one before. And Sif… Jane recognized the name from her father’s stories.  She was speaking to a goddess.

“A pleasure to meet you as well,” Gods above, how did one even address a goddess? “My Lady.” It was how her mother had taught her to address the lords that came to visit her father, and Jane supposed it would do for now.

“Please, call me Sif. I beg you.” Sif corrected as they moved to the gate just a little ways down.

Jane nodded fervently as she unlatched the gate. She noticed for the first time as Sif stepped through that she wore breeches like a man under her cloak and chest plate, but Jane supposed for a warrior goddess would be more fitting for a warrior goddess than a dress like the one she wore.

They walked together towards the house. Jane’s mother came out to meet them as they walked up the path, and Sif introduced herself much the same way. Jane’s mother curtsied – something Jane had forgotten to do. She also noticed that Sif did not correct her mother when she addressed the goddess formally and felt a secret thrill in it, like the goddess had taken to her specially.

Jane’s father and brothers were not yet back from checking on the livestock and fields, but soon after Jane’s mother was pouring tea the four men returned. Sif removed her clock at Jane’s father’s request and revealed a two-handed broadsword safe in its sheath. Stellahn – who was training to be a blacksmith – marveled in awe at the fine Aesir craftsmanship, the likes of which had never been sine in their little town before. But their mother had a rule about weapons and tools at the table so Sif slipped sword and scabbard over the back of her chair with her cloak.

Tea and porridge with fresh wild berries and honey really wasn’t a meal fit for a goddess, but Sif praised the food and thanked the family for inviting her. She had never been this far south before as most of the fighting she’d seen had been in the northern reaches where dragons and other beats roamed. She enthralled them with tales of such adventures until every morsel had been cleared from the table.

Because Jane’s chores were done her mother excused her from the day’s baking to go and show Sif their little hamlet, although Jane doubted very much that it would be anything of interest for the goddess. Her brother’s looked disappointed that Jane was the one to do so, but it was the height of summer and they all had much to do on the homestead. Jane did as well, but the two women had talked animatedly throughout the meal, and she recognized the look in her parents exchanged when she asked to be excused. It was the same one she had seen when she begged to be allowed to attend school in the city.

After the meal was done and cleaned up – Sif trying to help although Jane and her mother both doubted very much the woman had done any sort of domestic labor in all her long life – they set off down the dusty road, the sun rising behind them.

The village was five miles away, but there were woods and drumlins and a spot where one’s eye could follow the river all the way to the distant sea to keep them occupied.

They talked again the whole way; of Sif’s homeland and Jane’s studies, of the foods they liked best and their friends. Sif spoke of people Jane knew from stories told by her brother, father, and grandfather while Jane’s she doubted would ever leave the village. They even spotted a deer – soft and wide eyed with a fawn nervous and skittery between her legs – and Sif’s stormy blue eyes and sharp features had softened into a genuine smile.

They reached the village eventually, the market stalls already set up and teaming with people. They walked about, Jane saying hello to the familiar faces and telling Sif stories she remembered about the various villagers. She realized after Sif bought a scarf from Goody Wheeler that she was not introducing herself as a goddess. Perhaps she was trying to keep people from bowing to her or asking for favors and blessings.

The town was small, and Jane was not the only one home from school. She saw Donald Blake coming out of the butcher’s shop with his friend Jason, a package tucked under his arm. Jane pulled Sif down an alley between two houses. But Sif was a goddess and her senses were keener than Jane had anticipated.

“Who was that?” She asked as Jane led them around a back garden and over a creek bridged by a single plank board.

Jane sighed and led them back out into the square. “His name is Donald Blake, son of our village doctor. We grew up together, and he was courting me for a while.” She folded her arms as they stopped next to a large oak, hugging out her annoyance. “I thought I would marry him someday. But then he left for school a year before I did without telling me. The next morning I showed up to his house and looked like a damned fool.” Jane shook her head, fists tight around her arms. “And after that when he did come home I asked him about it. He said he was too busy for courting and that I should just forget about it. Can you believe him?”

Jane took a deep breath to try and calm her anger, and Sif put a hand on her shoulder. “He does not know what he misses out on.”

Jane gave her a teary smile and pulled Sif into a hug, forgetting herself and Sif’s status for a moment. She could feel Sif hesitate, but after a moment the woman returned the hug with a fierceness. Jane’s stomach felt warm like it did on snowy winter nights when they were snowed in and cracked chestnuts by the fire. It was a feeling of safety, of love.

“Thank you, Sif.” Jane said when they finally moved apart. The other woman smiled – radiated really – and Jane realized it was only the second time she had. She felt her cheeks heat and Jane looked down at her shoes nervously. “Well…I’m about sick of town how about you? I think we should go for a walk through the woods, don’t you think?”

Sif seemed surprised again, but nodded in agreement after a moment. “Yes, I believe that would be lovely.”

They left town on the opposite side they’d come in on and entered the woods. After only a few minutes, Jane managed to coax Sif off the pathway and into the underbrush with promises of knowing the forest like the back of her hand. After they wandered over the next ridge and were no longer in sight of the road, Jane pointed far below them to the slopping, grassy bank of the river; the perfect place to stop and dip your toes in.

When they reached the cool clearness, Jane kicked off her leather sandals and Sif unlaced her boots. They both gasped at the chill water, still cold from mountain snow melts. A few minutes later though their feet had warmed and the carpet of pebbles on the bottom were nearly as soft as the grass upon the shore.

Jane had been having so much fun, she had nearly forgotten that Sif was a goddess. “So,” She began, kicking a shower of water into the air as she stretched out on the grass. “Is there someone like Donald waiting back home for you?”

Sif went so still and so silent that for a moment Jane worried she had crossed a line with the other woman. But after another minute of thought, Sif spoke. “There was… And yet not in the same way. I thought I loved him in that way, but he never returned my feelings. He has been promised to another since we were small children, and they were recently wedded. I promised my loyalty to them both, but to be honest that is why I am here. I just needed some time to myself.” Sif looked over at Jane. “And I thank you for giving me that separation. I haven’t felt like this since I was much, much younger.”

Jane blushed and took Sif’s hand, squeezing gently. “Anytime you need it, I’ll be here or in the city.”

Sif was still looking at her, but returned the grip just as readily. “The thing is Jane, I feel I am ready to return to Asgard.”

Jane tried to hide her disappointment that her new friend would not stay and instead put on a happy face for the goddess. “That is wonderful Sif.”

Sif kept hold of Jane’s hand and pulled it up, now clasping it in both hers. “But Jane…Jane I would like you to come with me.”

Jane’s eyes widened. “Come with you to Asgard? The realm of the gods? But…but why?”

Sif smiled. “Because Jane, you are as smart as any Asgardian if not smarter than many. You say the library at your school is the largest you have ever seen? We have libraries larger than your entire town! And you would have access to all of them. Have you ever heard of a Soul Forge? The smallest particle you humans know is a grain of sand. Yet there are still smaller, and you will never know them without a Soul Forge. Please Jane, say you’ll come with me?”

Jane’s head was spinning, but Sif’s eager and hopeful gaze was enough to make her heart ache for joy. “Yes.” She nodded. “Yes, yes I’ll go with you!”

Jane didn’t realize she had begun to cry until Sif wiped them away. “Why do you cry?” The goddess asked. “Do you not wish to come with me? I did not mean to upset you.”

Jane shook her head furiously. “N-no Sif, no. It’s not that. These are tears of happiness.” And then before she could over think herself, Jane leaned forward and kissed Sif.

For a moment she worried as Sif froze and her lips were still, but then the goddess was pulling Jane forward and kissing back. Jane had been kissed by Donald, but Sif was entirely different. Donald had been dominating and fast, the kisses infrequent and mechanical. He’d been kissing her because he was expected to.

Sif kissed Jane like there wasn’t anything she would rather be doing. She let Jane push back, kiss back. It was like the ebb and flow of the ocean, not that Jane was a rock to be worn down by surging tides. Jane’s mind was swimming with lack of air by the time they pulled away, and Jane could still feel Sif’s lips. Touching her lips softly, Jane smiled to herself.

Sif looked as startled and happy as Jane felt, and she had to ask. “Does a kiss like that mean the same thing on Asgard that it does on Midgard?”

And for the first time, Sif blushed. “It does.”

Jane’s heart warmed and she leaned forward again, her hand on Sif’s knee, and kissed her cheek. “Good. Then when I am not reading and you are not training, we will have other ways of entertaining ourselves.”

Sif smiled.

XXX

Sif returned to Asgard that night, but she left Jane with the promise that she would return by the end of the week. There were very few ways to bring a human to Asgard, but she was sure Odin Allfather would let her come.

They’d had to talk to Jane’s parents when they returned, and they had granted Jane permission but she could read the anxiety in their eyes. They were worried she would never return. But Sif had assured her that she would be able to travel back and forth more easily and frequently than when she was away at school. Jane put her faith in that, and even if her parents didn’t they would not deny the request of a goddess.

Jane laid awake late that night thinking of Sif. She knew it was foolish; she would never be more than a passing flicker to the goddess. And yet the way Sif had _kissed_ her… Jane was in love with her already.

Jane spent the next several days in a daze. She did her chores, went to the market, and sat with her family in the evenings but it was all automatic. She even caught herself smiling at Donald. Yet even the problems of Donald’s slights against her seemed to pale in comparison to visiting Asgard on the arm of a goddess. And all because of her mind. If that didn’t make it into an Edda, Jane would write it herself.

Although when Skaddi joked that he would someday be telling tales of her adventures on Asgard she tried not to blush.

True to her word, Sif returned 3 days later. Jane was standing at the gate after her chores were done as she often had and actually didn’t notice the goddess approaching until Sif was almost upon her. Jane laughed with joy and surprise, asking how Sif had been able to come back so soon. Before Sif answered though, she kissed Jane like she had thought of nothing else since she left.

And that was how Hroggar found them, the sheep baaing and munching at the ferns behind him. The two women jumped apart, Jane’s skirt catching on the fence. But her brother only laughed and clapped Sif on the shoulder. Jane had not considered that Sif could blush that red, but there was an unmistakable glow that would have rivaled the tomatoes in the garden upon the goddess’s cheeks.

Jane felt shy for the first time that her family kept a farm as one of the sheep tried to nip at her skirts. But when Sif hoisted lamb into her arms and the look on her face was purest happiness Jane realized that her home was as much a relief for Sif as Asgard would be for Jane. Perhaps this really could work.

Sif had breakfast with them again, but this time it revolved mostly around the semantics of Sif and Jane’s trip to the realm of the gods. Odin had been reluctant at first; his son had just been wedded and was set to ascend the throne near the end of the lunar cycle. But his wife had seen the hope in Sif’s eyes and convinced her husband. Of course Heimdall was more than willing to help his little sister. Once Jane had packed enough belongings to last her a month Sif would only have to call on the Keeper and he would fetch them. The pattern left behind by the Bifrost would also declare that the family was officially God Touched and bless the land around them.

Jane was excused – again – from her chores in order to pack. Not that she could get very far very fast since Sif came with her and the goddess could be quite distracting. But eventually – between kisses and Sif’s hands sneaking across her bodice – Jane managed to pack up her school trunk. Sif kept promising to buy her dresses and breeches and blouses in Asgard, but it made Jane feel better knowing she would have bits and pieces of home with her. She did not have enough books to fill her trunk anyway. Maybe two months from now she would leave most of her clothes at home, but for now it would be her routine.

When she was done Jane said her good byes. She would be away for a shorter time than she would for school but she was travelling much farther. Her brothers were jovial, dotting on her like they often had as she grew up, but she could tell her parents were still worried. Jane hugged them harder, but she had faith in Sif. Finally, they stood in the pathway from the house to the back pasture and Sif held Jane close as she called on Heimdall. Light surrounded them and Jane felt a giant hook pull her up, but she could not tear her eyes from Sif’s.


End file.
